The Ease of War
by DarthNovii
Summary: The world has found conflict during perfect peace. When the Seventh Hokage and the rest of the Original Team Seven are killed by a mysterious organization thirty years after the conclusion of the Fourth Shinobi World War, Konoha will be left to pick up the pieces. Follow young Takachi Uchiha as he grows into a Shinobi and a man, in a world filled with war.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

The scene was one of complete and total shock and horror. The look of pain on my mother's face will forever be burned into my mind. There was a pile of shattered ceramics laying on the floor in front of her. Mixed in with it was the tea that, until a second ago, was in the cups that the ceramic belonged to. My father only took a few more seconds to react. But I was frozen completely. My mother's look of horror coupled with my own grief was enough to paralyze me for nearly a minute. It was as if the whole world just inverted. There were no safe thoughts. There was nothing that anyone could say to my mother and I that would relieve any of the pain. The only reason that I came out of my grief induced paralysis, was that my father turned to look at me from where he was holding my mother, and he gasped. It only took me a second to realize why. The whole room had taken on a more vivid nature. Everything was clearer and brighter. From across the room I could see my reflection on a crystal wine glass. In that reflection I saw, unmistakably, one tomo in each eye. My Sharingan was awakened, though it held little significance to me at the time. Finally released from my petrified state, I ran over to my parents with tears streaming from my new eyes and joined their pained embrace.

"You're sure there is no mistake?" my father's voice softly asked, breaking the deafening silence.

The Chunin ranked Shinobi standing before us shook his head slowly and with great effort, as though he desperately wanted to give another answer. Finally my mother broke from her trance. It started as one single pained sob, before evolving into what could only be described as pure grief and sorrow. We stayed like this for several more seconds before I had come to terms with what we'd just been told. The only remaining elder Uchiha, Sasuke my grandfather, was dead. With him went Jugo, friend of the family, Naruto, Hokage of Konoha, and Sakura, my grandmother and close friends with the other three lost. The whole world had indeed started once again down the path of self destruction.


	2. Chapter One

The funeral was massive, with nearly the entire population of Konoha being present. Several notable individuals from the other four nations also attended. Gaara the Fourth Kazekage was present, along with Temari. The Fifth Raikage, Darui, and his entourage made an appearance as well. Many people gave speeches and shared stories, but by far the most heartbreaking was the tear ridden speech that Hinata Hyuga-Uzumaki gave. As much as my mother would have wanted to claim the title of most devastated, the sweet elderly woman who had just lost her lifelong companion and husband, put all other sadness and sorrow to shame.

As pained as I was, the event brought with it a sort of elation for myself and the other academy students. We were going to be given an accelerated class and the Genin graduation exam at the end of the week. Whoever passed would be immediately promoted to Genin and would of course be one step closer to exacting revenge for the loss of our beloved Hokage and our other comrades.

The group that claimed responsibility for the heinous attack on our village called themselves Kiyomeru, and they also said that this was only the beginning. The investigation had yielded very few results as to how this mysterious group had managed to overpower the original Team Seven. After the great efforts from Sasuke Uchiha and Naruto Uzumaki, it was widely believed that the Fourth Shinobi World War would be the last real conflict in the world. Yet, despite their power, someone must have found a way to end the peace that had lasted for over three decades. The era of the Seventh Hokage was finished.

After nearly eight hours the new Hokage, Boruto Uzumaki, concluded the event and the bodies were ceremonially laid to rest. My mother and other close friends and family, including myself, remained for several more minutes paying our final respects. Eventually they too began to leave, one by one, until only my mother and I remained. She turned to me, with tears beading on her closed eyes. She spoke in a quiet, but very hard tone. It was a voice of hatred and anger. I'd never seen her like this and I was a little frightened.

"I know I was hesitant to teach you before," she said as she opened her eyes, revealing her newly awakened Mangekyo Sharingan. "But that hesitation is gone. I will teach you the secrets of the Uchiha."

With tears in my eyes again, I wrapped my arms around my mother. We stood like that for what seemed like an eternity. Eventually, I broke the silence.

"We'll get these guys together mom," came my vengeful declaration.

My mother chuckled softly to show her approval, but when I looked up at her, her eyes were just as sad as they had been when she first showed her Mangekyo.

"Let's go home," she said. "I have something to give you."

The next day the academy was bustling with angry and vengeful excitement. I hadn't slept at all the night before, but that didn't slow me down. I was used to running off little sleep. The gift I had received upon returning home was a scroll containing the various Jutsu used by and observed by my grandfather. He had written it after he finished his journeys across the world. It included many Kinjutsu as well as more conventional techniques. I had spent all night reading it, learning of the Sharingan and its many forms and abilities. I also had found a small section about Sasuke's time using the Curse Mark granted to him by Orochimaru. Due to my below average Chakra, the concept of the curse seal had enticed me. But Orochimaru was a monster, and replicating his work would require me to stoop to levels that I was unwilling to even consider, even in my current state of anger about the recent incident. But the underlying function of the marks were designed to replicate another ability. An ability outlined in great detail by my grandfather. The Sage Mode. I'd immediately begun studying this. There was the Toad Sage Mode, made so infamous by the Seventh Hokage. There was also the rarely seen Snake Sage Mode displayed by Kabuto during the Fourth Shinobi World War. But something in my grandfather's writing caught my attention. A small, seemingly insignificant line of writing.

"Across all the lands, Sage Modes of all kinds are revered at the highest levels. While the most common, Toad Sage Mode has been made famous by numerous Leaf Shinobi, my research and study has lead me to believe that there are a great many more than only that and the Snake variation. In fact, if my sources are to be believed, I've found no less than three additional types, including Cats, Wolves, and one that I've only seen one reference to, Owls."

The last item caught my attention. Bird summons of all kind had been used throughout history for everything from combat to message delivery. Having an airborne ally had the potential to yield incredible power. And now I was finding out that the most ancient of them may also be knowledgeable of Sage Mode? I immediately knew what my next project would be after graduation.

"Takachi," I heard my name called by Coan Sensei. "Day dreaming are we?"

The rest of the class gave a short chuckle but it wasn't a wholehearted tease like it might have been at another time.

"No Sensei," I replied. "I was thinking on an idea to enhance my training."

"Would you like to share?" he asked with small smile.

"It wouldn't be helpful to most of the students," I replied. "In addition it involves a secret Jutsu."

"Please keep your mind on the class then," he concluded.

I nodded and began trying to pay more attention. I liked Coan Sensei. He was an excellent teacher and a great role model. He was always ready to bring out the best in his students, and he was a talented Shinobi himself. Over all he was fairly standard in his appearance. He was tall, with a medium build, brown hair and brown eyes. Above all else, he was kind. In the days after my family's loss, I was permitted to skip class. I came back to the academy anyway, after only two days. I was upset of course, but sitting around and crying was never my thing as a child. I got antsy and decided that I needed to do something or I would go crazy. So I went back. The instructors were surprised to see me as the other affected students were still absent.

Among the students who were away, was Bree Uzumaki. She was the daughter of Karin Uzumaki and Jugo. When Jugo was killed, Bree was devastated. We didn't see her for another week, on the day of the funeral. She was in class the day after and any who noticed offered their condolences. She accepted them with broken smiles, showing a great effort to keep from crying. Realizing that I'd let my mind drift again I honed in on Coan Sensei's voice.

The class was one on projectile theory, explaining the intricate physics behind the art of kunai and shuriken throwing. It was a topic that I knew very well, but I decided that a little more knowledge could do nothing but help me. After the lecture was over we moved on to the practical portion of the class. We relocated to the training dummies situated outside the back door of the academy and practiced throwing weapons of our own choosing. My personal favorite was the kunai as it could be used both for throwing and for hand to hand. I also found it easier to visualize the straight flight path of the kunai, as opposed to the more curved arching path of shuriken.

I performed all drills and techniques without my newly awakened Sharingan as I wanted it to remain a secret. I was still nearly perfect however. I took notice when I found Coan Sensei watching me more closely. I made a more conscious effort to hit the targets dead center instead of just hitting within the small target circle that the exercise required. I also noticed his smile of approval before watching him walk over to another student to assist them with their grip. I rarely ever required any type of correction on form as I was normally flawless in my performance. This wasn't vanity speaking. I had a gift, and many, many hours of intense training that allowed me to perform at the level I did.

After a few hours, Coan Sensei released the class. I rushed home, eager to read more of the scroll that my mother had given me. The streets were quiet as they normally were after we were released from class. With no one to obstruct me, I made it home in near record time. I was so focused on getting home however that I nearly failed to notice the trip wire that had been placed at the entrance to the Uchiha Compound. At the last second I stopped and checked my surroundings. Everything was still very quiet. I carefully stepped over the tripwire and advanced slowly through the mass of mostly abandoned buildings.

With a whoosh of air a masked shinobi leapt from the roof of a nearby house and descended to my position. In a flash my hands whipped through a set of hand signs and the long chokuto sword sliced through a trash can that I had substituted in place of my body. From my hand three carefully aimed kunai flew towards the masked attacker. The kunai hit the wall behind as the masked shinobi flickered to an unknown location. I checked my surroundings again and found nothing. After several seconds the shinobi flickered into existence a few feet in front of me. This time the mask was gone and long black hair flowed down past her shoulders.

"I should have expected you mom," I said with mild annoyance.

"Good reaction time," she responded, completely ignoring my irritation. "How was class?"

"It was slow," I told her with a sigh. "We went over Shurikenjutsu."

"How'd you do?"

"I was pretty much top of the class."

"What does 'pretty much' mean?"

"Humbleness is wise in the presence of adversaries."

My mother laughed. It was a genuine laugh. The sadness had not completely left her eyes, but I was happy to see that she had let some joy back in. She motioned for me follow her and we made our way to our home in the center of the Uchiha Compound. My father had brought home a gift for me from his metal shop. Being the best metal worker in the village, my father had crafted nearly all of the high quality weapons and tools used by Konoha Shinobi. Over the past several months he had been purifying metal for use in a very special sword. He had finished that sword and presented it to me that evening. It was a medium length chokuto modeled after the one my grandfather used. It had superior sharpness and durability when compared to normal swords. It also had the ability to channel any type of elemental chakra. To test that, I pulled it from its scabbard and poured my chakra into it. Thankfully, my mother rushed over and snatched the sword from me. In a flash she threw it out an open window a split second before a blast of lightning and fire came from the blade.

I apologized for my carelessness and retrieved it before more carefully controlling my chakra and repeating my attempt. This time the blade lit up and began to burn. The fire was a mild one but I could clearly see the applications of having a flaming sword. And I could always put more chakra into it. The thing that confused me is that when I hadn't tried to control my chakra at all, it had released Lightning _and_ Fire chakra. I had always thought that shinobi only had one primary element. I was intrigued but we were about to eat, so I put it out of my mind for the moment. About half way through the meal, I asked my mother something that had been bothering me.

"Mom," I started. "I don't want to upset you, but I was wondering, how did you get your Mangekyo? I thought a dear friend had to be lost to awaken it."

My mother closed her eyes in concentration before giving her answer.

"That's sort of true," she responded. "The awakening of the Sharingan in all forms requires feelings of extreme emotion. The specific mechanics behind the Mangekyo Sharingan's awakening are particularly mysterious. Very little is known as to how or why it awakens."

I took a moment to consider what I'd just heard. If no one really knew why it awakens, then maybe the assumption about needing to lose a loved one was wrong.

"Have you been using it at all?"

"Some," she answered in between bites. "I think I have a handle on my left eye, but I have no clue what my right eye does. Currently I seem to be able to store and release Chakra in my left eye at will. I've been putting some in every day, but there doesn't seem to be a limit."

"That sounds incredibly powerful," I said with an impressed expression. "You could store enough Chakra to do anything."

"My thoughts exactly," she said with a smile. "I'll be using it to bolster my Chakra reserves for some of my more powerful techniques."

I pondered the potential of my mother's new ability as I stuffed another bite of… I looked down to discover that I'd been eating bites of pepper stir-fry, possibly one of my least favorite foods. I grimaced, but realized that my pallet seemed to be tolerating the offensive green and red vegetables for once, so I ate the next bite anyway.

"Took you long enough to notice," my father said, causing my mother to giggle. "You've practically eaten half your plate."

"Ha-ha," I said mockingly. "Thought I wouldn't notice since I've been so preoccupied huh?"

"Peppers are good for you Taca," my mother laughed. "We wanted to make sure you keep you strength up for the test this week."

I grimaced again as my mother used my least favorite nickname, which only earned me another laugh from her.

"I have another question," I said, recovering from my food frustration. "Can an Uchiha learn Sage Mode?"

My mother paused for a minute, a thoughtful expression filling her face.

"I don't see why not," she said finally. "Normally it requires extreme Chakra levels to achieve, but it may be possible with smaller amounts if your Chakra control is good enough. Good luck getting someone to teach you though."

"I kinda have that figured out already," I said. "I found a bit in Grandpa's scroll that mentioned other races that teach Sage Mode to humans. It said that Owls were on of them. I was wondering if maybe you'd heard of the Owl summoning contract."

"I have," she answered with a puzzled expression. "But it hasn't been seen in decades and I never once heard a single story about Owl Sages. I just use Snakes, and if you really want to try, you could just come and meet the Ancient Serpent with me. I promise I won't let him eat you."

"Rather not," I said with a laugh. "Seems kinda risky. You really don't know if you can become a Snake Sage without trying, and if you fail, you die. The toads by contrast would be much safer, but they'd never teach an Uchiha. I also saw Cats and Wolves on the list, but I've heard the talking ones are more or less extinct. I doubt there's anyone left to teach me. Owls on the other hand, seem to have just erased themselves from existence. Why would they do that if they weren't in hiding? Owls are definitely the ones I want."

"I see," my mother said with a chuckle. "I'll see what I can dig up. Maybe there's something in the restricted Jonin section of the library. Don't get your hopes up though."

"I think I've had enough of this stuff," I said, glaring back down at my mostly empty plate. "I fully expect to see something fried with fish tomorrow…"

That comment earned another laugh, and I excused myself from the table. Walking down the hall to my room, I continued to consider what I'd learned. I looked around my dark room slowly. With a tiny thought, my Sharingan flared and the room brightened as if the walls were on fire. Approaching my bed, I opened the drawer in my nightstand and pulled out the scroll my mother had given me. Unrolling carefully, I returned to the part I had been reading the night before.

My grandfather had outlined in great detail the nature of his curse mark, and the Sage Chakra he'd been given by Jugo during the war. It seemed to me that not only could an Uchiha use Sage Chakra, they seemed to thrive off of it. I read and reread the section over a dozen times just to make sure I'd understood it as well as possible. Finally, I decided it was time to sleep.

Over the next three days I studied the Sage Mode issue some more and I had begun investigating other sources as well, though as my mother had said, I could find nothing noting any possible locations for the contract scroll. My mother found similar setbacks, nothing alluding to possible locations, though she was able to acquire a scroll detailing Owl culture and history. I poured over that scroll during any free time I had, desperate to find a clue.

During that same time however, my mother had also begun teaching me the clan's fire Jutsu. I could already create a Fireball as tall as an adult. My mother was rather surprised as she had noticed my less than average chakra. She had used her Sharingan to investigate further and found that by some innate reflex, my chakra Control was incredibly good. After this realization, she started teaching me the basics of Lightning Release as well. After a few lessons, I was able to create a weak current across my skin. It wasn't enough to really cause any damage, but it would give a surprising jolt to anyone who touched me.

The morning of the last day of the week came, and with it, the chance for us all to become Genin. The impromptu test came in the form of a sparring match. The decision of who would pass was to be made by the instructors. Winning the match was not a requirement to graduate, though it would moderately improve my chances. All that we had to prove was that we were capable of performing adequately in all required categories. The only rule for the matches was that you couldn't kill or maim your opponent. We all went outside and our names were called by twos. My partner was Bree. I could tell she was still miserable despite her desperate efforts to hide her emotions. We sat next to each other as we watched the other students spar. Most of the sparring matches ended with only Taijutsu or a few shuriken having been used. A few used some of the more basic Ninjutsu techniques, and surprisingly we actually got to see someone use a Genjutsu. That was a pretty boring spar for everyone but me though. None of us could see the Genjutsu, except for when I stole a peek with my Sharingan. I got the impression that if the rest of them could see what I did, they probably would have been glad to not be on the receiving end.

Finally, it was our turn. We stood from our spot on the side lines and walked to the center of the sparring area where Coan Sensei was waiting.

"How are you doing?" I asked, holding my hand out in the traditional symbol of respect. "I can forfeit if you're not up to this. No one here understands your pain better than me right now."

"Thank you Takachi," Bree said with a shuddering breath. "But I think I'll be okay."

She met my hand with hers and Coan yelled out, 'begin.' We both leapt several meters backward and I began to develop my strategy. As a testament to her immense Uzumaki chakra Levels, Bree immediately produced over twenty Shadow Clones. I could have simply activated my Sharingan to pick out the real one by analyzing their body language, but I was hesitant to reveal my newly awakened Kekkei Genkai. Instead, over the course of about a second and a half, I procured and threw kunai at their vital organs until all but the original was eliminated. I realized that at some point she had to have used substitution with one or more of her clones in order to avoid my attack. This worried me, as it meant she was incredibly fast. As a testament to this she began a direct advance and was nearly on top of me in a mere fraction of a second. I was no slouch when it came to Taijutsu however. I had begun to rely heavily on my Taijutsu and Shurikenjutsu prowess due to my limited chakra levels.

When the first blow came, I was ready. Her left fist came forward in a simple straight punch aimed for my face. I batted the arm aside with my right arm and twisted my body to reward her attack with a savage kick to her right side. Surprisingly, it never land. Instead of doing what was expected which was to dodge or block the kick, she simply continued her charge straight into me. We rolled several times before coming to a rest with her on top of me. She came down with her right fist this time. I simply brought my left hand up and stopped the attack in place. She was strong, but I had been training in Taijutsu for nearly my entire life.

I was so caught up with the thrill of the fight that I initially failed to notice when the air around Bree turned cold and deadly. I looked up at her face to find her eyes completely yellowed over, her whole face contorted with grief and pain. Some strange scales were slowly spreading across her skin and the fist that I had blocked began to have more force behind it. I suddenly realized that I was in trouble. Without thinking I used the only tactic that I could in this situation. With my left hand occupied I forced Bree's left hand into compliance using my right hand. In just a few seconds, six hand signs formed. Tiger, Ram, Monkey, Boar, Horse, and Tiger again. The fireball that shot from my mouth was nothing like what my mother could do but it was enough. Bree leapt off of me and bounded several meters backward to avoid my fiery assault.

At that point the instructors, who were serving as judges for the matches, had taken notice and moved in to intervene. Unfortunately it was far too late. With too large mutated arms Bree, in her new form, batted the three Chunin aside like they were insects buzzing around her head. With that the battle took on a totally new meaning… Survive. Bree had set her sights on me and nothing short of my death was going to stop her devastating barrage. She charged again, but this time she was faster and much more confident. Blocking and deflecting was no longer an option. For me, this had just become a long range battle. For once, my opponent could outperform my Taijutsu. I leapt into the air and procured eight more kunai, which I then sent zipping through the air at my deranged sparring partner. Without any hesitation, Bree brought up one of her enlarged forearms and blocked all eight with a meaty, "thunk," sound.

Before I returned to the ground, she leapt up to meet me. In the air, my now comparatively smaller size gave me the advantage, allowing me to deflect the brutal punches and kicks that assaulted me. I took a moment to admire the power that Bree's paternal clan provided her. I instantly understood why Orochimaru went to such lengths to acquire those traits for himself.

I kicked Bree in the chest and successfully put some distance between us, before landing nimbly on both feet, and just when I nearly gave up and retreated, I remembered something. There was a reason why Jugo followed my grandfather around. The Sharingan could bring the affliction of Bree's clan back in check. I decided that the benefits of revealing my Sharingan so soon and not dying far outweighed the benefits of secrecy. My Sharingan flared to life, and with all the adrenaline I could feel that it had advanced since the last time I'd activated it. As soon as I made eye contact with Bree there was a noticeable change to her demeanor. Her confidence disappeared as my mild hypnosis kicked in. Slowly, the scaly portions of her body began to recede and were replaced by her normal body structure. Just when I thought it was over, two Jonin that I didn't recognize leapt out from somewhere unseen and pinned Bree to the ground. In an instant, everything that I'd just accomplished was undone and Bree reverted to her murderous personality.

As with the Chunin before, the Jonin were easily thrown off and Bree returned to her feet with a blood curdling shriek. One of the Jonin pulled a large cleaver sword from his back and assumed a fighting stance. I knew that I had to intervene or someone would die. In a grey flash, I body flickered right next to Bree and positioned myself in between her and the now very serious Jonin.

"Stop!" I commanded, mustering every bit of killer intent that I could.

All three stopped dead. The Jonin both had confused expressions after taking notice of my speed and Sharingan. I only had a moment to act, so once I was sure that the Jonin weren't going to attack, I turned my head just far enough to re-establish eye contact with Bree. Once again, her body began to normalize, but this time she made it all the way back. When the yellow in her eyes disappeared, Bree realized what had happened. Her face turned contorted from rage, into an expression of fear and horror. Before anyone could say a word she turned around and ran away, cutting through a nearby ally. I turned back to the now growing crowd of observers.

"Are you okay?" Coan Sensei asked as he approached me.

"I'm fine," I replied coldly before turning my attention to the Jonin. "What the hell were you thinking!? I had it under control!"

The two Jonin became agitated.

"Listen here brat," one of them growled. " _We_ had it under control and we were assigned to her in case this ever happened."

"And just what, might I ask, were you going to do against _her_?" I asked in the same tone that he used. "Kill her? Kill an innocent grieving child? You weren't even close to having her under control! If I hadn't been here, you, her, and probably several other people would have been killed. To think that this is the state of our village, that the killing of children is considered acceptable."

As I spoke the two Jonin became more and more bitter and the on looking crowd was staring at them expectantly, waiting for their response to my verbal assault. I didn't give them that chance. I turned back to Coan Sensei.

"Don't let anyone follow me," I told him.

Without another word, I took to the rooftops to find Bree. Despite her heavy exertion, she was still quite fast. It took me nearly twenty minutes and several wrong turns to catch up to her. I found her huddled in an alleyway. She was crying so hard that her entire body was convulsing. She didn't notice me until I was only a few feet from her. She tried to stand up and run again but she collapsed back into her huddled position. All the strength and power from before was gone, replaced by her own guilt and fear.

"I'm… So-Sorry," she stuttered out between sobs. "Please don't hurt me."

I didn't respond, though I had to resist the urge to laugh at the ridiculous notion of hurting her. Instead I sat down next to her, and put one arm around her. Her crying paused for a moment as she registered what I'd done. I pulled her closer to me and we stayed like that. I can't remember for how long, but it grew dark only a little while later. She only needed a friend, someone to comfort her. It pained me to know that someone could lose their father and instead of being comforted, they would be attacked. Eventually the exhausted girl passed out and her body went limp. I carefully lifted her off the ground and started for where I knew her house to be. I didn't make it half way there before Bree's hysterical mother intercepted me.

"Oh my god!" she screamed. "What happened?"

I silenced her with a shushing sound before giving my calm response.

"She's fine. She's asleep. It's been a long day for all of us."

"Give her to me," the women demanded.

"It's fine," I told her, shaking my head lightly. "I'll carry her. She's not heavy."

The red haired women eyed me critically before nodding her head and turning to go towards her and Bree's home. We walked for a moment before she asked her question a second time.

"What happened?" she asked, much calmer this time.

"Our sparring match began fairly normally," I began.

Over the next few minutes I shared, in great detail the events that had transpired earlier that day. Bree's mother listened carefully, occasionally nodding. Every time I saw her red hair swing by I took note of the similarities she shared with her daughter. Bree shared her long frazzled hair with her mother. Their eyes were the only real difference, with Bree's eyes being more similar to her father's orange eyes. Also, to my surprise and despite my claim from earlier, Bree was actually fairly heavy. Unlike many of the other girls in my class who tended to be on the lighter, soft side, Bree was hard and muscled. It wasn't a struggle for me to carry her by any means, but I took a mental note and resolved to challenge her to a Taijutsu match under more controlled circumstances.

We eventually arrived at their home and I carried Bree inside to her bedroom. I placed her on her bed gently before stepping back out of her room and turning to the girl's mother.

"I should get home," I said quietly.

"Nonsense," she replied. "You're exhausted. I won't make you walk all the way home in the dark. I really owe you for what you did today. If you hadn't intervened who knows what could have happened... "

I saw a single tear form and fall halfway down her face before she wiped it away and herded me back into Bree's room.

"She'll probably be more at ease if you're here when she wakes up," Karin told me. "I'll bring you some blankets and pillows. You can make a makeshift bed next to hers."

I nodded and she stepped out for several minutes. I took the time to analyze the room. There was a single window, a bed and a dresser. I couldn't make out much else in the dark so I activated my Sharingan and continued. The walls were a light violet with light blue trims. She had various hand drawn pictures all over her walls in no discernible order or pattern. They ranged from children's drawings to more realistic ones drawn by an artistically gifted hand. Many of the more quality drawings had Bree's kanji drawn neatly in the bottom left corner. Just as I stepped closer to one to admire it Bree's mother returned with an armful of blankets and pillows. She placed them on the floor to the side of the bed and started to leave when I spoke softly.

"I didn't know she was an artist," I said quietly.

"She got it from her father," Karin replied. "He loved to paint and when Bree was old enough to pick up a pen, she started to doodle on anything she could reach. We eventually got her a drawing book and some pencils. The stuff on the walls is mostly from that first book. She's on her second one now."

"She's got talent," I said. "Not only as an artist. She has the skills and power to become an excellent Kunoichi."

Karin nodded before walking out into the hall and closing the door. I laid out my makeshift bed and settled in. I was asleep in minutes.


	3. Chapter Two

"Takachi?" I heard my name softly spoken.

My eyes flew open and I found that Bree was staring down from her bed at me with apprehensive eyes. I had no idea how long I'd been asleep. Light flooded in from the window showing that morning had arrived. I sat up and stretched before looking back at Bree.

"I'm really sorry," she said timidly.

"Why?" I asked.

Her expression turned to confusion.

"I nearly killed you," she replied after several seconds.

I laughed.

"If that's why you're apologizing than you should go find those poor instructors," I said still chuckling. "You tossed them aside like they were bugs. You never had a chance of hurting me."

She laughed weakly but to reinforce my statement, I allowed my Sharingan to flair to life. I decided that there was no reason to hide them anymore. I had heard stories about how my great uncle, Itachi Uchiha left his Sharingan active at all times nearing the end of his life. I decided that since I had already revealed it, that I would aspire to keep mine active at all times as well. As if to defy me, I could feel them ebbing away at my decidedly below average Chakra reserves. I was still a long way away from that goal.

"Is that what you used to stop me?" Bree asked.

I nodded silently. Against all logic, she stared directly into my eyes. It seemed the longer she looked the more confidant she became. She eventually asked me the question that I'd been waiting to answer.

"Why are you still here?"

"Your mother asked me to stay," I told her.

My response confused her and she sat thinking for several seconds. I continued before she could come up with a response.

"I was also worried about you," I added. "I hadn't realized how much this had affected you. Your dad was a friend of my family. He tried to keep this part of his world away from you. The Uchiha were never supposed to be a part of your life. Unfortunately, with yesterday's incident, I don't think that's an option anymore. More than likely if we both passed the test, they'll put us on the same team out of necessity. That is if they let you out at all… I'm sorry they attacked you…"

"That isn't your fault," she responded weakly.

"It kind of is," I said. "If I had been more aware I might have been able to stop them before they attacked and then I could have brought you back down without incident."

"It's not your fault I'm a monster," she replied with more conviction.

I listened to her words and sat silently for a moment, contemplating the best thing to say.

"What is a monster?" I asked, tilting my head slightly to the side.

My question seemed to freeze her in place. She didn't say or do anything for several minutes. The silence was relaxing for me because I knew that I had gotten her thinking. Eventually she spoke, but she had lost much of her confidence.

"A monster is someone who hurts people," she said.

"I disagree," came my almost immediate response. "I believe a monster is something that wants other people to suffer. A human by contrast is a being that means well in most cases but struggles with their own sense of selfishness and occasionally makes mistakes that hurt people. The line between those two isn't the point where someone hurts another person, but rather when they no longer care that they did."

"The people who killed your father? Those people are monsters. They only want the world to burn. You on the other hand… No… You're not a monster. You're just scared, hurting, and a child. You're someone who needs to be supported and cared for. Someone who has the potential to do great things if only given the chance. You are a blank slate, ready and eager to have things written on it, a whole life's worth of things. Don't let anyone take that from you."

After several seconds, tears began to well up in her eyes. She furiously wiped them away but they were replaced by more mere seconds later. She slid out of her bed and onto my makeshift one. She threw her arms around me in a desperate hug, which I hesitantly returned after a few seconds. We stayed like that for several more minutes before Bree's quiet sobs stopped and she spoke.

"Thanks Takachi," she whispered. "Thank you for being my friend."

"You shouldn't ever have to thank someone for being a friend," I told her. "A friend is someone who cares and asks for nothing in return."

She finally let me go and stared once again into my red eyes. Eventually she turned away, stood up and clambered over my blanket bed to reach her dresser. She opened a drawer and started pulling out clothes.

"I'd like to change," she said. "My clothes are a little torn up from transforming."

I started to get up but she stopped me.

"Don't leave," she said. "Just, uh… Look away for a second."

I did as I was told, and a few seconds later I heard the rustling of clothes rubbing skin. I took that opportunity to admire the pictures all over her walls. They were much more vibrant in the light though they were no less impressive in the dark.

"Your drawings are really good," I told her, my back still turned.

"They aren't much," came her reply.

I could tell from her tone that she blushed at my complement. One of the pictures was one that showed a shinobi standing in front of a crowd of enemies with a wounded ally directly behind.

"What's that one?" I asked, pointing to the detailed portrait.

The brushing of clothing stopped for a moment as she turned to look at my muse.

"I drew that after hearing the story about the Fourth Hokage during the Third World War," she replied before returning to her task of dressing.

"Have you heard of ANBU Director Sai?" I asked.

"No, who's that?"

"He uses drawing coupled with Fuinjutsu to produce physical manifestations that can attack and defend for him," I explained. "Maybe you should try it."

"That doesn't sound practical," came her reply. "It took me three hours to draw that. I don't think my adversaries will wait patiently for a few hours so that I can draw my weapons."

"They don't have to be neat to be deadly," I said with a chuckle.

"I'm too self-conscious to draw anything that isn't as close to perfect as I can get," she said in a serious tone.

I laughed again but then went back to looking at the various drawings. A few seconds later the rustling of her changing stopped and she came back and sat next to me. Her new outfit was a black sleeveless shirt and a pair of white shorts. On her feet was a pair of black socks that came up just far enough to be visible above her boots if she were wearing them.

"I just thought of this," Bree said breaking my train of thought. "How did I get home last night?"

"I carried you," I said as I turned to look at her.

She blushed slightly before looking away.

"You should've just woke me up," she said.

"You were exhausted," I stated plainly.

She stood up and started to walk towards her door.

"I'm hungry," she told me. "What about you?"

I nodded and got up to follow her. Once outside her room we heard a conversation going on in the general direction of the kitchen. One of the two voices was Bree's mother but the other was only familiar. Bree's mother was clearly upset judging from her tone of voice but the other was calm and collected. They silenced themselves as we walked in. I immediately took notice of the ANBU mask sitting on the kitchen counter. There were two people sitting at the table in the dining area of the kitchen. One of them was, as expected, Bree's mother. The other was someone that I'd only ever seen pictures of during the lectures at the academy.

"Lord Sai?" I asked, only barely able to contain my excitement.

The fact that I had mentioned the man by name only moments prior caused made me apprehensive, as if I'd done something to conjure this meeting.

"Yes," the man replied plainly.

I reigned in my own feelings of honor at meeting the man sitting in front of me and composed myself.

"What brings you here?" I asked slowly.

He stared silently at me for several seconds before I realized he was looking at my Sharingan. I considered turning it off but then decided that it was something that people would have to get used to.

"I heard about yesterday's incident and I was asked by the new Hokage to take action," he started finally. "Normally the ANBU wouldn't involve themselves in this manner, but at the request of the Hokage we have little choice."

"What do you mean?" I replied inquisitively.

"After speaking with the academy instructors, you were unanimously approved to progress to the rank of Genin, with several of them suggesting that you be permitted to participate in the up and coming Chunin Exams." he explained. "However, it was also decided by them and the Jonin assigned to observe Bree that it was too dangerous for her to be permitted to pass. That being said, after I was informed by the Hokage of his opinion, it came to my attention that throwing away such talent and potential would be wasteful. So with that in mind I present to you both an offer."

He paused for several seconds, glancing over at Bree's mother before continuing.

"The only way that everyone would accept the risk is if you and she were on the same team," he added. "This is due to you revealing that you possess the Sharingan. You will be able to control Bree in the event of another incident. In the interest of keeping you both safe, and to maximize both of your potentials as young shinobi, you will be added to a three man ANBU squad. The third member on the team will be Shikamari Nara. She was an elite Jonin and was recently approved to join the ANBU. Of course, all of this requires both of you to agree."

I stood, slightly shocked, for nearly a minute before, turning to look at Bree. Her expression mirrored mine. She met my gaze with fear and shock. Once the initial surprise passed over me, I began to think about what I'd just been told. I was basically receiving an invite for entry into the ANBU. My instinct was to accept without reservation, however, in this situation I had to take a step back and consider what I was getting myself into. As a Shinobi, I had to consider the safety of the village and its people and it was very possible that Bree could pose a significant threat if she were to overpower me. If that were to happen, the blood spilled would be on my hands. That was a lot of responsibility for a nine year old Genin to possess. But I also had to think of the wellbeing of my new friend, Bree. Her future was more or less in my hands. If I declined this offer, I would be granted a position on a normal three man Genin squad and I could live my life as normal. But if that was my choice, they would probably never leave Bree alone again. She would be a prisoner in her own home. Despite the danger, my choice was clear.

"You don't have to make the choice right now," the ANBU director said.

"I think I do," I replied immediately. "The only thing that I can do is make the choice that does the most good... I have to accept… I accept the responsibility. I will watch over Bree and ensure her safety and the safety of the village."

As I said this I looked over at Bree to see her reaction and I could see guilt on her face. I knew she was hating herself for putting me in this situation but I was actually thankful. She had given me the chance to do something more than I could have otherwise.

"It's okay," I told her quietly. "This is my chance to do something meaningful in the village."

She stared at me for a long time before looking down at the ground.

"I can't make you do that," she said finally. "Not just so I can become a ninja. I won't make you babysit me."

"Who said anything about babysitting?" I asked with a laugh. "If your Sage Transformation hadn't come out, I would've walked all over you yesterday. I'm going to train you, and you better learn to keep up."

She looked back up at me as my words became less playful and more serious. I could see a little hurt on her face as well as hope. I knew I'd made her feel weak, but I'd also hoped my biting words would motivate her to join me. She nodded her head slightly showing that they had accomplished that goal.

"Well," I started, turning back to Sai. "Looks like the choice is made."

"Not quite," he countered. "We still need your parent's permission, and Karin is also being rather stubborn."

Karin snorted at Sai's jab but remained silent aside from that.

"We don't actually need their permission you know," I said. "That law was created as a mere courtesy to civilian parents who worried about their children. It doesn't apply to the ANBU selection process. You can read about that in any library."

With my Sharingan I could see Sai's lips turn up in the corners ever so slightly, showing the most subtle of smiles. Karin's expression, by contrast, turned into shock and then anger.

"Takachi how dare you!?" she almost yelled. "I thought I could trust you! I don't want my daughter in the ANBU! She'll be killed!"

"Killed after being trained by our villages most elite, whilst also being surrounded by them?" I responded calmly. "Doubtful… However, killed during a seemingly harmless mission by assassins sent to target the Uchiha heir and the prodigy of the Sage Transformation with only a single Jonin, myself, and one other Genin to protect her? That seems fairly likely."

With that, whatever outburst that Karin would have replied with was silenced. Replaced by a look of careful consideration. With my words taking full effect, I didn't wait to add more fuel to the fire.

"The missions will certainly be more dangerous, but we'll have the best of the best with us from the start," I added. "The only other option is to lock her up and never let her see the light of day again. That's the only way she'll be truly safe without me by her side."

Karin was now in deep thought. I could see the conflict of her mind narrated silently by the myriad of miniscule facial expressions only visible to my enhanced eyes. She was facing a tough decision but I was confident that she would make the choice I desired. Eventually her face smoothed out and she calmed down.

"I suppose you're right," she admitted finally. "I guess the safest place for her really is in the ANBU. I'll go along with this on one condition. Otherwise the Hokage will get an earful."

"Very well," Sai replied. "What is this condition?

"Bree is not to go anywhere without Takachi present," she answered. "She needs to be no more than one room away from him at all times. I couldn't live with myself if someone hurt her because they had to choose the village over her."

"I think that is within reason," Sai acknowledged.

He nodded in response and walked over to where he'd set his mask down. Casually placing it on his face, he turned to the door and began to walk out.

"We'll contact the two of you when we are ready to accommodate you both," he declared as he left.

"I'm so sorry Takachi," Bree said. "I really messed things up."

"Like I said," I started. "You're actually helping me out. I'm looking forward to working with you, and I'm about to gain access to some really powerful information. This is the best thing that could have happened to us."

She stared at me with a little bit of surprise, looking for any signs of insincerity. She found none and eventually walked over to me and gave me another hug.

"You're the best friend I have," she whispered.

"Still hungry?" I asked.

"Oh!" she exclaimed. "I almost forgot."

A second later, as if the previous conversation had never happened, a smile came to Karin's face.

"What do you guys want for breakfast?" she asked in a much lighter tone.

"Something sweet please!" Bree said excitedly bouncing slightly on her toes.

I almost laughed. Seeing Bree have any childish inclinations at all was a breath of fresh air compared to her previous demeanor. Karin turned to me expectantly.

"That sounds good," I agreed. "Coffee for me as well please. And no peppers."

The last part I said with a dark expression.

"How would you like it?" she asked as she pulled some items from various cabinets.

"Black," I said.

"You sure?" she replied.

I nodded. She put a pot on to boil and got to work on the rest of our breakfast. She worked for several minutes before I figured out what she was making. The smell of cinnamon in the egg batter gave away the sweet frying bread before I could actually see what was being made. Part of the way through, she poured hot water into a mug over a tea bag that I assumed had coffee grounds in it. She walked over and handed me the mug. I could smell the fresh coffee as it steeped in the still steaming water. A few minutes later Bree and I were presented with two plates. On each plate were two slices of sweet, egg fried toast.

I casually took a sip of my coffee as I watched Bree excitedly attack her breakfast with nearly the same ferocity that she'd had during our sparring match the day before. I took a bite of my own, noting that Karin was a far better cook than I'd expected. Bree was finished with her portion before I'd even finished half of my first slice. My coffee supply on the other hand was beginning to dwindle. Not wanting to bother Karin again, I walked over and refilled my mug with water from the pot. The coffee bag had more than enough left in it to brew a second cup.

"You finished that quickly," Karin told her daughter. "You want more?"

"Yes please!" Bree replied, still chewing her last bite.

As I finished my breakfast and Karin finished Bree's second serving. I sat silently observing. I was looking forward to telling my mother what happened. Serving the ANBU was a great honor and she'd be incredibly proud.

"What are we doing today?" Bree asked me.

"I need to go home," I told her in response. "My parents will have heard what happened and how I chased after you, but they'll probably still be worried."

"Can I come?" she asked.

"Sure," I said. "That was your deal right Karin?"

Karin growled an affirmation at me before returning to washing a few dishes at the sink. I drank the last sip of coffee from my mug and stood up. The night before, when I'd brought Bree to her room, I'd left my ninja bag and sandals in her room. I retrieved them and started towards the front door, Bree following closely.

"We're heading to the Uchiha Compound right?" Bree asked excitedly.

"Yes," I said flatly. "Are you always this happy in the morning?"

"No actually," Bree said sadly. "I normally wake several times throughout the night because of nightmares. But last night I didn't have a single one. Must have been because of my guardian angel."

Bree smiled at me and I laughed at the thought of me with a pair of angel wings.

"What are you laughing at?" she asked with a frown.

"I'm no angel Bree," I answered. "I have the potential to be just as much of a monster as the rest of my clan."

"I don't think that's true," Bree argued. "You saved me. Three times actually. Once from myself, once from the Jonin, and once from captivity. I think you're a hero."

"I see," was my only response.

"What should we do after checking in with your parents?" she asked.

"Probably train," I said. "Now that I know what to expect, I think you should start to learn how to control your power. I can help you do that."

"Okay," Bree said apprehensively. "I don't want to hurt you."

"As I said before," I answered. "I don't think you can."

Bree gave me a quizzical look before noticing my Sharingan again and letting the stress on her face melt away.

"What will we be training on?" Bree asked, her energy returning.

"I think Ninjutsu," I said. "I think you should start learning a nature release."

"Which one?" Bree asked excitedly.

"We won't know until you get tested," I answered her, then decided to elaborate before she could ask another question. "There's special paper that you use to determine what your natural affinity is. You pour your Chakra into it and it will change properties based on your dominant nature type.

Bree considered this quietly for a few minutes, and as she did, the entrance to the Uchiha Compound entered into view. We walked straight up to my house without incident, unlike earlier in the week. As soon as I opened the door, my parents greeted us.

"Welcome back little hero," my father announced proudly.

"Coan let us know what happened," my mother added. "I kinda figured you'd spent the night at Karin's."

"I did," I confirmed with a nod. "But I have more to tell you."

"Why don't I get some tea," my father offered. "We do have a guest after all."

I nodded an agreement and the whole group relocated to the dining room. My father retrieved cups and tea bags from our pantry, before filling each cup with the leaves and water that was suspiciously already boiling.

"Did you know I was coming?" I asked pointedly.

"We guessed," my mother said as my father reentered the room with four steaming cups of tea.

I nodded and took a seat at the table.

"Karin got a visit from Director Sai this morning," I started. "He was there for Bree and I."

"What could he possibly want?" my mother asked with a shocked expression.

"Bree was denied a pass from the instructors and the Jonin assigned to keep her in check," I answered. "Sai however, has different plans. He feels that preventing Bree from progressing is a waste of potential. However, there were some conditions to her becoming a Shinobi. Firstly, she must be under the care of an ANBU elite. Secondly, she and I are never to be more than one room away from each other."

"Because of your Sharingan?" my mother asked knowingly.

I answered that with a nod.

"In order to fulfil both these requirements, and also to ensure we are trained sufficiently enough to defend ourselves, we've both been inducted into the ANBU Blackops as trainees."

My parent's stunned expressions left little to the imagination. My mother thawed out first.

"So you're in the ANBU?" she asked.

I nodded again.

"That's incredible!" she finally exclaimed. "Congratulations!"

"Thank you," I said smiling. "But I really owe it to Bree."

"Ah yes," my mother said, shifting her gaze to my new teammate. "Bree I haven't seen you since you were a Baby. How are you since yesterday? I hope Takachi didn't hurt you."

"Hardly," Bree said with a snort. "He could've been killed."

"Hardly indeed," I retorted quietly before speaking up. "Bree and I were going to train, do you have any Chakra paper?"

"I think so," my mother answered with a thoughtful frown. "Check my bag."

I walked over to where my mother's ninja bag was hanging on the wall and sifted through it for a moment. Finding what I needed, my hand exited the bag with a small white box. I returned to Bree's side.

"Here," I said, handing her a small sheet of the white Chakra paper. "Focus your Chakra into this paper."

Bree did as I asked and focused for a moment, then the paper turned to dirt and crumbled.

"There's your answer," I said. "Earth."

"That's incredible!" she responded excitedly. "What about you?"

I frowned.

"I don't know actually," I answered. "I've never used it myself."

"You try," Bree commanded.

I pulled out another sheet and poured my chakra into it. Nothing happened. I did it again, doubling the Chakra. Again nothing. Finally, I poured as much Chakra as I could focus through my hand. With a loud "pop," and a blinding white flash, the paper vanished. I turned to find that my mother was mirroring my confused expression.

"What just happened?" I asked.

"You overloaded the Chakra paper," she answered. "But I felt you build up to that point… I don't understand why the paper didn't work. Here, try another. But don't use so much Chakra."

As she spoke she gestured to the box of papers and her Sharingan flared.

I did as I was told. The paper again did nothing. I didn't push this time though.

"I've never seen that color before," my mother muttered to herself.

She took the paper from me and held it between her two flattened palms. I felt a familiar flash of Chakra, then she handed it back to me.

"What did you do?" I asked.

"I desensitized the paper to fire Chakra," she answered. "Try it now."

I focused my chakra as before and released it into the paper. It crinkled with the pattern of arching electricity. I looked at my mother expectantly to find that she had another piece of the paper between her palms again. She handed me this one as well.

"Again," she commanded.

I obeyed without asking what she'd done to the paper. My chakra again poured into it, but this time, it burst into flames and disintegrated into ash.

"That time you removed the lightning right?" I asked, and she nodded. "What does that mean?"

"It would be too expensive for the people who make this to account for every possible type of nature release in existence," she explained. "So if you put a chakra type into the paper that doesn't conform to one of the five elements, it does nothing."

"Why wouldn't my chakra be one of the five elements?" I asked. "I've already started learning two."

As soon as I finished talking, something clicked in my head.

"Do I have a nature Kekkei Genkai?" I asked excitedly.

"Without having specialized Chakra paper it's hard to say for sure," she answered. "But it certainly seems likely."

"That must be why when I thoughtlessly poured Chakra into my chokuto, it exploded with fire _and_ lightning."

"Almost definitely," my mother confirmed.

I stared at my palms for a moment. My head was running in circles trying to figure out the implications of my undiscovered ability.

"I don't think I'm qualified to teach you nature release any more," my mother admitted with a sigh. "I suppose it was good timing that you're getting an ANBU teacher."

I nodded my agreement.

"Maybe you can try to figure out what it is while we train?" Bree suggested hopefully. "That's what you wanted to train on anyway."

"That's true," I admitted, rising from my chair. "We should head out."

"Okay," my mother said smiling. "Don't push it too hard. Developing an advanced nature release can be taxing. Especially one with no known techniques."

"Got it," I answered as Bree and I walked back out the door.

With Bree in tow, I left my house and led us over to the Uchiha's training yard. It was a rather large field with three sets of three training posts arranged in a triangular formation. I walked to the center of the field and stopped.

"I don't know much in the way of Earth Release, but I know enough to give you a basic lesson," I explained. "I know one or two simple Jutsu that you can learn."

"What should I start with?" Bree asked excitedly.

"The first is the Rock Shelter Technique," I said. "I can't do it myself, but I can show you the hand seals."

"Show me," Bree commanded eagerly.

I nodded and demonstrated the few hand seals needed to make the Jutsu work. Bree followed closely by copying the seals. When she'd done them a few times, she began to concentrate her Chakra. Finally, Bree performed the seals. I watched as each seal molded her Chakra into the form needed to make the Jutsu perform. At the end of the signs, she slammed her palm into the ground beneath her feet, releasing all the Chakra she'd been building. The ground shook and three curved slabs of stone rose out of the ground until they formed a complete dome around Bree. I was dumfounded. On her first try she'd managed to form a complete dome. It only took one look to figure out how.

"Bree, I called. "Come on out."

I watched as she released the Jutsu and the dome crumbled. She walked over to where I was standing and looked at me expectantly.

"That was impressive," I started. "I expected you to barely be able to make a wall. How do you feel?"

"Exhausted," she admitted between heavy breaths.

"Would you like to know why," I asked, and she answered with a nod of the head. "You just used nearly nine times the Chakra that Jutsu actually required."

Bree's jaw dropped.

"Exactly," I said with a smile. "That means two things. Firstly, your Chakra levels are insane. Almost five times mine. Secondly, it means your Chakra control sucks. Immensely. Judging from what I can see, you probably only have enough Chakra for three more of those, and you'd probably pass out afterwards. I could probably do that same Jutsu, the exact same way, at least six times, maybe seven."

"Okay," Bree said with a sigh. "How do I get better?"

"I've been reading about that in a book written by my grandfather," I explained. "When he was a Genin, his Sensei gave him training called the tree climbing technique. Basically, you have to climb a tree, but without using your hands. You can do this by focusing Chakra to the bottoms of your feet, and creating a small attractive force."

"I don't understand," Bree said with a frown. "How will that help?"

"Try focusing your Chakra to your feet," I ordered.

Bree closed her eyes for a moment and I watch as Chakra began to slowly trickle down to her feet. After a minute of this, Bree gasped and doubled over.

"That's incredibly hard," she admitted. "Why is that so much harder than it sounds?"

"The feet have an extremely low concentration of Chakra nodes, and what's more, they're arranged in positions that make it incredibly difficult to control. Basically, by mastering this, you're skipping straight to the hard stuff. Everything else will be easy after this."

"Can you show me?" Bree asked.

"I wish I could," I said regretfully. "Unfortunately I just read about this yesterday and I hadn't had the chance to practice. So it looks like we'll be learning this together."

"Okay," she said finally. "Let's do it."

I nodded and we made our way over to the base of a tree at the edge of the clearing.

"You try it first so that I know what to do," Bree said.

Again I nodded. Pulling a kunai from my bag, I began to pool my Chakra and push it into my feet. I wasn't quite sure how much Chakra was needed to make this ability work, but I decided to err on the side of caution, using a small but reasonable amount. I took a few steps back to get a running start, then bolted in the direction of the tree. One step after another I ran up the side of the tree, until my momentum ran out and I realized I'd need more Chakra if I wanted to do this without a running start. I made a quick slash at the peak of my climb, before falling back down the length of the tree and landing nimbly on both feet.

"Wow," Bree said in amazement. "That was impressive."

"Not really," I argued with a grimace. "That wasn't even close to enough Chakra. But anyway, it's a start. Do you think you can try?"

Bree nodded and mimicked my preparation. After a moment, she ran at the tree like I did, but as soon as her foot made contact with the tree, the bark exploded into sawdust and smoke, launching Bree several feet through the air and onto her back.

"Ouch," she said, stunned.

I couldn't help myself. I doubled over with laughter. Bree threw a small rock at me which I nimbly dodged without interrupting my laughing.

"I'm not sure whether it's the wet grass on my back, or the maniacal laughter, but something tells me that was way too much Chakra," Bree admitted after a deep breath.

"You think?" I choked through laughter.

After a moment and three more rocks, I managed to calm myself enough to help Bree off the ground. After that introduction to the training, we continued to make attempts. I made progress a little faster than Bree. Almost six hours later, I could walk up the tree with no running start and only mess up once for every five attempts. Bree was still in the running stage, but at least she wasn't blowing up trees anymore.

"Good job!" I called from the ground, as Bree managed to place a mark at least ten feet higher than her last attempt.

Her powerfully muscled body raced towards the ground as gravity embraced her. I took a moment to admire her grace. She was almost as agile as I was. Her feet hit the ground and her legs absorbed the shock harmlessly.

"You should try and see if you can walk up for a few steps now," I encouraged.

"Okay," she panted.

With my Sharingan I measured her Chakra as she focused it.

"Stop!" I exclaimed. "That's perfect. If you keep your Chakra right at that level you'll be perfect. Keep your focus and just pretend you're walking on the ground."

Bree halted her Chakra build up and maintained the levels. She took a few steps in the direction of the tree and her Chakra remained even and stable. Placing one foot on the tree, she picked her other foot up and took her first walking step on the tree. Not wanting to distract her, I held my congratulations at bay. Slowly and carefully, Bree placed one foot in front of the other, making her way up the tree. At the twenty foot mark, her Chakra wavered and her feet lost their grip. She fell head first, and with no momentum to flip around. Seeing that she had no way to right herself in the space she had, I jumped up to meet her midair. I caught her easily and returned her to the ground.

"That was extremely good," I praised, placing Bree on her own feet.

"I still fell," she sighed.

"So did I," I countered.

"You didn't have to be caught," she argued.

"Neither did you," I said with a mischievous smile. "I could've let you hit the ground. It wouldn't have killed you. Now try again. One more then I think we call it quits for today."

"Fine," she sighed again.

"This time just take a few steps and try to stay in one place," I advised.

She repeated her previous preparation, sending just the right amount of Chakra to her feet. As before she carefully took her steps until she was standing on the side of the tree. There she stayed for several minutes. Not once did I see her Chakra even flicker.

"I think you've got it," I praised. "Come on down and we'll head back to my house. It's close to dinner time."

"Okay," Bree said smiling "I am pretty hungry."

With a neat back flip, she landed squarely on her feet and walked to where I'd been watching.

"I noticed you didn't really get to train much," Bree said.

"I was busy making sure you were learning what you needed to," I explained. "I'll come back out here after dinner. I still need to figure out the implications of my extra nature release."

Bree nodded and we began walking towards the house. Once there we were greeted by the smell of fish and I remembered my request from the night before.

"Smells good," I called. "Who's cooking?'

"That would be me Kid," I heard my father answer from within the kitchen.

"Good," I said much more quietly as I entered the kitchen. "Mother is hopeless when it comes to fish."

"I heard that you little punk," said the voice of my mother as my father and I shared a laugh.

Bree smacked me on the back of the head, which didn't hurt in the slightest.

"Be respectful," she snapped in a mocking tone, earning another laugh from me.

"I like her," my mother said as she came into the kitchen. "Good job Bree. You have a hard job ahead of you keeping this one in check."

Bree grinned as my mother ruffled her hair and walked over to give my father a kiss on the cheek.

"That does smell good," my mother agreed as Bree and I took our seats at the table. "Good thing your father decided to make a well-rounded meal.

My senses instantly went on high alert and my eyes narrowed suspiciously at my mother.

"Why do you insist on doing this to me?" I asked darkly, trying to play off the sinister red glow that I knew was boring a hole in my mother's face.

"Most of it is fish," my mother assured me.

"Why did you have to ruin fish?" I groaned, slamming my head into the table.

"I feel I'm missing some integral part of this conversation," Bree said under her breath.

"Don't worry about it," I growled defeated from underneath my arms.

My mother laughed. A moment later, plates of fish and mixed vegetables, including my most hated adversary, were placed in front of all of us. The problem was, my father had used a collection of exclusively green vegetables, making impossible for me to determine what was what. I would be forced to eat them… peppers…

"I just want to inform you all," I started in the same dark tone as before. "Someday, I will be the most powerful Shinobi in existence, and those demon spawn pepper farmers will get what's coming to them."

Finally understanding the context of the situation, Bree laughed so hard that tears welled in her eyes. When her laughing subsided, she realized that my mother and father were already eating, so she joined them. I on the other hand, eyed the bite of food on my spoon carefully. I tried to use my enhanced vision to discern what was what, but it was useless. The gravy my father had chosen, while smelling incredible, did too good a job of disguising the shape and exact color of the items present on my plate. Finally I decided that I had no choice. As with the night before, I placed the bite in my mouth. It tasted incredible, but I couldn't let anyone else know that. I made that sourest face that I could, but I could tell my mother wasn't buying it.

"Admit it," she said with a victorious smile. "Your father finally found a way to make peppers that you like,"

"Only because he used gravy," I growled dejectedly. "That's cheating."

The rest of the meal finished quietly. It struck me as right that Bree was accepted into my home without question. This was how it was supposed to be with the Uchiha. They were never meant to be ostracized. While my threat from earlier was only a joke, my ambition to bring the Uchiha back to power was very real. My mother and father having me was proof that pure blooded Uchiha are no more powerful than a mixed blooded one. My clan would rise again, and we'd be more powerful than ever. And unlike what was allowed to happen in the past, I would never let anyone from my clan or my village, start hostilities against the other. If another Madara ever came to be, I would deal with them personally, much as it would pain me to do so.

With our meal finished, I decided it was time to return to the training yard. The sun was setting, but there was still enough time to train before I would need to sleep. Unfortunately, I was reaching my limit with my Sharingan. I only had maybe another thirty minutes before my Chakra levels would be too low to sustain it.

"Come on Bree," I said as I stood. "Daylight is almost gone, and so is my Chakra. I want to give my nature release a try."

"Okay," Bree said with a smile. "I'm feeling much better after some food. Maybe I'll keep working on tree climbing."

I nodded and we once more headed back to the training yard. Bree did exactly what she said she would. Practicing her tree climbing with renewed determination. I however stood in the center of the training yard meditating. I focused only on my Chakra. Its shapes, and its colors. I could feel the way my two basic nature elements interacted with each other, but I struggled to make the connection meaningful. Nevertheless, I knew that if I focused hard enough, and kept experimenting, eventually I'd find the answers.

In that moment, I figured it out. I had been approaching it wrong. I had expected the combination of fire and lightning to be intensely destructive. But just the opposite was true. The Chakra mixing in my body, forming from the violent torrent of power provided by my fire and lightning, was actually quite opposing from these properties. If anything, I'd have to describe it as stable. I pulled a measure of this Chakra and focused it. It felt like a physical thing, something I could reach out and touch.

"What's that?" Bree asked softly.

Despite her clearly trying to avoid startling me, that's exactly what happened. My eyes flew open and for a split second, as my concentration was shattered, I saw a tiny marble sized green ball floating a few inches in front of my face. But as soon as my last shred of focus was lost, it blinked out of existence.

"You startled me," I scolded. "And I'm really not sure. I kinda just figured out how to manipulate this new Chakra."

"Do it again," she said. "But keep your eyes open."

My brow furrowed in concentration, I fought my Chakra to obey my will, trying to replicate the sensation I had with the tiny green ball the first time. It worked, and the ball popped back into existence. I tried to feel what it was, and I could tell that it was physically there. It had a shape like a ball because it my mind I was compressing it. I imagined that I was molding it into a different shape. It started to elongate and become more like a needle. After several seconds, I noticed that my Chakra was dangerously low. I allowed the green construct to vanish.

"Where'd it go?" Bree asked. "It was cool."

"Just making something that small and trying to keep it from disappearing required all my concentration, and drained all my remaining Chakra," I said through heavy breaths.

Bree's eyes opened wide as my Sharingan blinked out of existence.

"Was it really that intense?" she asked, concern creeping into her voice.

"Yes," I panted. "It's very strange. It seems to have this sort of stability, but it requires so much energy to keep it from disappearing."

Bree adopted a puzzled expression, no doubt trying to unravel the mystery of my new ability. Eventually, she abandoned this in favor of a sort of contentment.

"Well, you can figure it out tomorrow," she said. "We've both made incredible progress. We can both now walk up a tree. And you've taken the first step towards inventing a whole new nature. Time to rest."

I nodded my agreement and fought my way into a standing position. My depleted body resisted even that level of exertion, but despite that, we slowly made our way back to my house. Right after passing the door my mother rounded the corner in a hallway.

"Oh," she said looking at me with concern. "What happened? I was just getting used to your Sharingan."

"I may have over done it," I said.

Without warning, my vision blurred and I collapsed onto the floor. I could hear my mother speaking to me, but I no longer had the strength to fight the growing darkness.

"Let him sleep," came the voice of my father. "This wouldn't be the first time he's done this."

And with that command, I thought no more.


	4. Chapter Three

The first thing I became aware of was the sound of soft breathing to my right. It was even and drawn. It occurred to me that the person doing the breathing was probably asleep. The next thing I noticed was how warm I was. It was uncomfortably warm. I then noticed the weight of several blankets over top of me. As the feeling returned to my body, I could begin to move. My eyelids flew open and I shot into a sitting position. My sudden movement caused the breathing to my right to catch, before I heard the sound of clinking metal. Turning towards the sound revealed the huddled figure of Bree, who had chains leading from each wrist and each ankle to the wall behind her. She was staring up at me with bloodshot eyes.

"You're awake," she said flatly.

"What happened?" I croaked, suddenly very thirsty.

"You've been unconscious for three days," came her dull reply. "You had severe Chakra exhaustion."

"How?" I asked.

"I don't understand it completely," she admitted. "All I heard was that your new nature release pulled Chakra in a way that your body was not used to, and it caused Chakra to be depleted from the vital organs."

At the end of her explanation, the only door to the dimly lit room opened. In came man wearing the standard issue medical ninja uniform.

"Good," he said warmly, with a smile. "I was hoping I heard you awake. How are you feeling?"

"Confused," I said, then suddenly becoming angry. "Why is Bree chained to the wall?"

"Ah," the man said. "An unfortunate necessity. All will be explained shortly. Before anything else is done, I need to make sure you're in good health."

My Sharingan flared suddenly as my anger grew.

"Before anything else is done," my voice sounded in a sinister growl. "You will unchain my friend from this wall or I can assure you the consequences will be unpleasant."

The doctor took a reflexive step back as my killer intent hit him like a tsunami.

"Takachi stop!" Bree shouted. "I asked them to do this. So that I could stay with you. It was the only way they'd let me."

My gaze momentarily shifted to Bree to search for any signs of coercion or Genjutsu. I found none.

"If that's true than I hold no grudge," I said more calmly. "But my warning is still in effect. Unchain her now."

"U-u-of course," the doctor stammered.

He walked back out the door.

"I'm sorry you had to endure this Bree," I said softly. "It'll be over in a moment."

A moment later, the doctor, plus Sai, my mother, and an ANBU agent with her mask hanging on her belt.

"Takachi, don't threaten the doctor please," my mother chided softly.

Without a word I simply gestured to Bree. My mother sighed, defeated.

"The keys are attached to that band on your wrist," Sai said flatly. "You may release her at your leisure."

Without hesitation I threw my legs over the edge of the bed and stood up. Everyone in the room seemed to want to stop me, but they held their ground. Contrary to their clear doubt of my physical condition, I felt incredibly strong. Far more than usual. Taking three quick strides, I stooped down and began to unlock the manacles on Bree's extremities. When the last one was off, I gently grabbed her hands and lifted her off the floor. I then turned to the doctor.

"What happened to me?" I asked.

"You suffered from a very unique form of Chakra exhaustion," he explained. "Normally, when you perform a Jutsu, physical energy is pulled from every cell in your body to be molded into Chakra. But when you did it, your vital organs seemed to be excluded from this. Three days ago, when you were working on your unknown nature release, your body started pulling from your vital organs do to your exhaustion from using the Sharingan for over eight hours. And because your organs were unused to being used as a source of physical energy, they were depleted almost instantly. Your liver, both kidneys, and your heart, stopped functioning no less than a dozen times before we managed to stabilize you. This condition actually appears to run in your family. Your great uncle on your mother's side, Itachi Uchiha had the same condition, though it was caught far too late in his case. At your age though, it's correctable using a combination of Chakra conditioning and stimulants."

"So this is the reason for my lower than average Chakra levels?" I asked.

"Not on its own no," he answered. "It is a contributing factor, but your cells really do produce less physical energy than is normal in your family. There isn't much that can be done about that except for training."

"So my levels may increase after the therapy," I pressed hopefully.

"No more than twenty to forty percent," he answered.

I nodded, content with these numbers.

"My apologies for my hostile behavior," I said, before turning to Sai. "I assume you're here to give us our orders?"

Sai nodded.

"This is Shikamari," he said, gesturing to the fourth person in the room. "She will be your trainer and your guardian until you are able to pass the ANBU graduation exam."

"Honored to meet you both," Shikamari said with a slight bow of her head. "Provided everything is in order, we will be leaving immediately."

"Leaving?" I asked, raising one eyebrow and turning to look at my mother.

"Yes," she confirmed. "Your training will officially start in two days. You'll be traveling to a secret location."

"How long will we be gone?" I asked, now looking at Sai again.

"The standard ANBU training is six months," he answered. "But in your cases, having only just graduated from the academy, we've accounted for the possibility that it could take anywhere from three to seven years. Since it isn't reasonable to ask two un-expecting children to leave everything they know for seven years, we've decided that you'll spend that time in six month increments with at least two weeks spent here within any six month period. Your time in hiding will consist of training, and classified missions deemed to be within your abilities. Your time here will be considered classified until the day you both graduate. You'll arrive in secret and only immediate family will be informed of your arrival."

I took a moment to process this, as I'm sure Bree was doing the same.

"That sounds reasonable," I concluded. "When do we leave?"

"Your mother has already ensured both you and Bree's gear are here," Shikamari interjected. "You'll be issued ANBU gear in addition to that, so whatever personal effects that are not strictly necessary will be returned to her. Your father and Bree's mother have already been contacted and are being cleared for entry as we speak. We'll be leaving directly from this installation in exactly fifty-two minutes. We will be escorted to the edge of Konohagakure city by a team of four ANBU agents. At which point we will rendezvous with three additional squads who will escort us to the edge of Konohagakure controlled land. There we will leave the agents behind and disguise ourselves as refugees of the recent looting incidents that have been occurring as a result of the assassination of the Seventh Hokage. Any resistance we encounter will be eliminated with lethal force. Do either of you have any questions."

"When acting as refugees," I started. "Will we have a more comprehensive backstory than that?"

"You will both be given more thorough instructions on our way to non-friendly territory," Shikamari responded without skipping a beat.

"No more questions," I said, before looking at Bree expectantly.

Her face was more than enough to let me know she was in shock. I grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her in for a hug.

"It'll be okay," I told her gently. "Your mom will come see you off. We'll be trained by the best of the best. We'll be back every few months to visit. You'll be okay."

"O-okay," Bree said after a few seconds. "I can do this."

I released her from the embrace but remained holding her hand to keep her from panicking. She did not resist. A moment later, the sound of footsteps were heard outside and in came four more people. The two in front were Karin and my Father, each being guided by a fully masked ANBU agent. They each had a blank empty expression on their faces like they couldn't see. My Sharingan revealed that they were both under the effects of a Genjutsu.

"What happened to them?" I asked.

"They have both been place under a Genjutsu that prevents them from seeing or hearing, and from judging spatial dimensions," my mother explained. "It leaves their minds intact but prevents them from being able to remember any details of their trip here."

One of the ANBU agents closed the door before they both released each of their charges from the Genjutsu.

"Bree!" Karin exclaimed. "Are you alright?"

Bree ran to her mother and I tuned her out for a moment as I walked over to my parents.

"Father," I said softly. "Mother. I hope you can come to forgive me for leaving like this. I am honored by this opportunity and I'd be a fool to ignore it. Thank you for being supportive."

"You have nothing we need to forgive you for," my father said as a tear dripped down his cheek. "We are incredibly proud of you. We look forward to the next time we see you, whenever that may be."

"We love you Takachi," my mother added. "Now you have a lot of prep to do. And I know you've never been sentimental. So go get both you and Bree's gear ready, so she can have a few more minutes with her mother."

I nodded with a smile, though I wished I hadn't agreed with her. I leaned in and melted in my parents embrace for only a moment. I could no longer afford to be a child. Pulling away, I got Shikamari's attention and we quietly slipped out of the room.

"She'll be joining us shortly," I explained. "This life wasn't her choice."

"I understand," Shikamari sighed. "I have many friends who joined young. Most of them regret it. I'll do my best to make it bearable for both of you."

"Don't waste such efforts on me," I answered, clearing my still dry throat. "I can take whatever you have to dish out."

Shikamari snorted. I could tell she was skeptical of a nine year old being up to the challenge. I would just have to prove it to her.

"Where can I get some water?" I asked.

"Up ahead," she answered.

I followed my new sensei down the halls until we reach our destination, a room slightly larger than the hospital style room I'd been sleeping in. Inside were two full sets of ANBU gear. Next to those were personal effects of mine and Bree's. I immediately started sifting through mine. Finding a full canteen, I took a small drink, just enough to wet my dry, cracked throat. The only things I took of my original possessions, were the scroll written by my grandfather, the sword I received from my father, and a book that was left with a note from my mother. The note said 'Owls'.

With my items sorted, I began to remove my hospital garment and assemble my new ANBU garb. I pulled on the shirt and trousers first, followed by the armor. I found that there were eight small pockets mounted on the chest piece of the armor designed to hold miniature scrolls. There were also four additional pockets on the lower back portion of the armor designed for medium sized scrolls. It struck me as odd that they were empty before I notice a pile of scrolls laying on the floor. There were sixteen small scrolls and eight medium ones, enough to fill both Bree and I's twelve pockets.

"Storage Scrolls?" I asked curiously while gesturing.

"All the small ones are," my sensei answered. "Two of those larger ones are also. You'll need them for your gear."

I immediately discerned the purpose of the eight smaller scrolls in concert with the single large one. The small ones were called Rapid Scrolls, and would be used to replenish gear mounted on the body such as kunai or shuriken pouches, as well as for keeping smaller items that need to be more readily accessed. Each of the smaller ones could only be sealed or unsealed. Specific items could not be retrieved without emptying the entire thing. The larger one was a Survival Scroll. These scrolls could have anywhere from five, to fifty individual slots for storing individual items, but unlike the smaller ones which could be used instantly without opening them, this one had to be opened and a specific slot has to be selected before accessing the contents. My brief training on Fuinjutsu also reminded me of the gigantean battle scrolls. These scrolls were designed to store hundreds or thousands of items using a matrix that reacted to thought based summoning. All one had to do with one of those was think of the item they wanted and use a little Chakra. The complexity of these scrolls required them to be massive. I was grateful that these were not standard issue.

Inspection of the two Survival Scrolls revealed that they were rather advanced, and contained a full fifty slots. I claimed one for myself and began storing my various non-weapon items in it. For the smaller Rapid Scrolls, I rolled four of them open and made a few tiny changes to them, earning an interested stare from Shikamari.

"Where'd you learn to do that," she asked.

"My grandfather's scroll had a small section on Fuinjutsu," I admitted. "Nothing like what you'd see in an Uzumaki Seal Grimoire, but adequate for my needs."

The changes I made, caused the small scrolls to become Swap Scrolls, allowing one item to be exchanged for another. I marked my sword and tanto to be exchanged for my ANBU cloak, so that I wouldn't have to remove it for battle. I then marked my entire ANBU outfit, excluding the scrolls, so that they would be exchanged for a set of civilian clothing and a small back pack. The scrolls would be moved from the pockets on the armor to the small bag. Trying to seal a scroll inside another scroll, generally creates far more problems than is worth it. I tested the scroll for my cloak and swords first. The cloak seamlessly popped in and out of existence opposite the weapons mounted on my back. Next I tested the disguise scroll. Like with the first one, it worked flawlessly, allowing me to seamlessly switch between my ANBU attire and a civilian one. Leaving my armor and cloak on, I finished sealing my kunai refills in the other six Rapid Scrolls that I claimed for myself, and tucked all my scrolls, including the three empty, medium ones into their designated pockets.

Turning to the second set of gear, and the small pile of Bree's belongings, I searched for items I knew she would want. I included her art book and a set of pencils, before I began packing her survival items into the scroll as well. I marked all her gear with the same marks I used for my scrolls but I needed her to finish the sealing so I went back to my mask. I had expected an animal to be carved out of the mask, but instead it was blank. Holding it up to show Shikamari, I gave her a quizzical look.

"They all start out blank," she said. "The animal shape is chosen by the owner, and the colors appear due to their Chakra patterns. If you focus on a shape and pour your Chakra into it, it will complete itself. Once the face is done, put it on your face and it will mold itself to fit without straps."

I considered what shape I wanted for a moment, before remembering my interest in owls. I imagined the shape and focused my Chakra. The mask suddenly became warm and the front face began to contort like clay being molded. The end result was an owl like face with two purple lines crossing each eye hole. I then placed it on my face. I felt the warm material again start to change its shape, and after a moment, it no longer had to be held in place. Strangely enough, the mask was extremely comfortable, seemingly allowing my breaths to pass right through it. Bree walked in a moment after I finished my mask.

"I'm ready," she said with a small smile.

"I grabbed the only items I could think of for you," I said, smiling back at her. "Your book and some pencils, as well as those strange kunai."

"Kunai?" she asked. "Did they have a fire pattern on them?

"Yes," I confirmed.

"They were my fathers," she explained. "They react to his transformations, changing their shape to match."

"Sounds like they'll be a good addition to your arsenal," I said. "Now start putting your gear on. I have some scrolls to finish setting up."

Over the next few minutes, I repeated my previous process to allow Bree to alter her outfit as well. Once my work was done, I handed Bree her mask.

"Think of a shape and focus your Chakra," I commanded. "Then put it over your face."

She thought for a moment, then I saw her Chakra pour into the mask. After a moment, I recognized the shape of a relatively passive Oni with two horns on the forehead and toothed mouth closed. It had a flowing blue stripe that seemed to have no pattern for its path, making the mask look far less intimidating. She then placed the mask over her face as I had. Her breathing caught as the mask reshaped and startled her. After the mask finished we both stood up and faced our sensei in our full gear.

"Ready?" Shikamari asked.

"Ready," we confirmed in unison.

I took Bree's hand and led her out the door. Our new instructor joined us and began to lead us down the labyrinth of corridors that I realized must have been part of an underground complex. My theory was confirmed a moment later when we began to ascend a tall flight of spiral stairs. Atop the stairs was a small landing where four fully geared ANBU agents awaited us.

"Six minutes until departure Commander," a large male agent reported. "No adversaries detected on the route."

"Thank you Hitotsu," Shikamari answered. "Inform the forward team that we'll be leaving now."

"Yes ma'am," he answered.

The big man produced a Shadow Clone, which then immediately dispelled itself. In ten seconds he looked back at Shikamari.

"Confirmed," he said. "They are ready."

"Move out," she commanded.

They headed for the door at a brisk pace, while Bree and I followed close behind. I expected to see sunlight through the door, but there was only the pale light of the moon. We exited out into a narrow alleyway, and immediately took to the rooftops. We kept a fast pace, reaching the gate within ten minutes. There we found twelve additional ANBU agents hiding in the branches. Without a word between the two teams, we changed course and headed for the border. If it wasn't for my Sharingan, I never would have known the ANBU were in formation around us.

While we dashed through the trees, our sensei gave us our cover story. I would be called Kogi, and Bree would be called Gya. Shikamari herself would be called Issil. We were former citizens of the town of Frida, seeking shelter after bandits destroyed our home. We were given various mannerisms to practice, as well as a list of vocabulary to avoid using. We spent the last hour of hour journey being quizzed by Shikamari. She would ask us a question or start a conversation, and we would be expected to respond according to what she taught us. Once we had a grasp on our identities, she started asking us tactical questions. 'What if you're talking and haven't let anything slip, but the other person seems to be preparing for an attack?" Bree and I answered to the best of our knowledge, and accepted guidance where it was needed.

It took us nearly until dawn to reach the Konohagakure border. I could see the beginnings of light forming on the horizon as we left the tree line. As planned, Shikamari changed into a set of civilian clothing, while Bree and I activated our scrolls. With our disguises and our stories in order, we set off on the day long trip to our destination. As the sun rose into the sky, indicating morning, Bree and I practiced theoretical battle strategies played out for us by Shikamari. By noon, we were over half way finished with the trip. Unfortunately, that was also when we encountered our first problem.

"Be on guard you two," Shikamari said. "We are being followed. Do not forget, anyone who learns we are ninja cannot be allowed to recount their story."

We both nodded in answer.

"If we must fight," I whispered to Bree. "I want you to be ready to transform. You could probably handle bandits by yourself in that form, but if we're attacked by Shinobi, you'll need that form just to survive."

"Okay," she answered in the same hushed tone. "I'll be ready."

Moments later, we heard the sound of hooves following close behind. Less than a minute later we could hear voices.

"Hey there you three," one of them called out.

In order to avoid suspicion, we stopped and turned to look as six men on horses, rode up to us.

"What are you guys doing traveling without guards?" the same man asked with what I assumed to be an attempt at a charming smile.

"My sister's town was attacked by looters," Shikamari started. "She asked me to bring her kids the next town over so they can be safe. We'd welcome the company if you gentlemen are also traveling in this direction."

I stopped to admire my sensei's ability to fabricate such genuine answers to questions, but only for a moment. My attention was immediately pulled back to the six men, three of whom were staring intently at Bree, who cowered behind me slightly in response.

"Unfortunately not ma'am," the man said. "We're taking a different road up ahead. You guys would be wise to come with us. This road's crawling with all kinds of trash."

"We appreciate that," Shikamari answered. "But we're expected by days end and we'll be missed if we detour. I'll be careful in avoiding any danger."

"I really think you guys should listen to my friend here," one of the other men said as he jumped down from his mount. "He's been known to speak good sense once in a while."

The man began to approach us in a menacing stroll. The second he reached for the sword at his side, I started to reach for my scrolls. The only thing that stopped me was a subtle hand gesture from Shikamari. It was at that moment that I noticed six slowly crawling lines of shadow reaching out from where she stood. The man in front who was approaching us had already been caught, but hadn't noticed yet as his movement was being allowed. As soon as the last shadow reached its target, I released my breath.

"Gentlemen," my sensei said. "You have made a fatal mistake."

As she spoke, her hand reached into her bag and retrieved a pair of kunai.

"Sensei," I said, making her stop. "Wait. I have a better idea."

"Which would be?" she asked.

Instead of speaking my answer aloud, I simply activated my Sharingan and stepped to where she could see it.

"Do you think you can do it on all six of them?" she asked, mildly surprised.

"Yes," I said flatly. "But even if I didn't, would it matter? You could just kill them if it doesn't work."

Shikamari made an expression that said 'fair enough', before making a gesture to show I had her permission. I turned to the men with my Sharingan flashing. One by one, I caught them with eye contact until I had them all synchronized to my will. When I finished the last one, I began to weave a simple but powerful Genjutsu. My Sharingan reflected in each of their eyes momentarily while I altered their brains to conform to my wishes. When I finished, their eyes returned to normal, and they were lifted from their stupor.

"We really ought to get moving if we want to reach your destination before sunset," the man on the ground said."

"What did you do to them?" Bree asked.

"They believe that we hired them as guards for our journey," I said with a chuckle.

I watched as the shadows keeping each of them pinned retreated back to their master.

"Not bad," Shikamari said. "They could prove useful. And we're much less likely to get attacked now. Plus we have horses. This should cut some time off our journey. You do know we'll still have to kill them though."

"I figured as much," I answered with an indifferent shrug. "I was hoping to use them for more practice. My Genjutsu could use some work. This trick was effective, but it lacks elegance and used an incredible amount of my already dwindling Chakra."

"We'll see," she answered me with a smile. "Perhaps I'll let you keep one of them."

"That doesn't seem right," Bree said softly. "These may not be good men, but they don't deserve to be toyed with."

"Wrong," I said harshly before staring right at one of the three who had been staring at her. "What do you do for a living?"

"I capture or buy young girls from struggling villages and sell them to the highest bidder," the man said emotionlessly but without hesitation.

"And do you ever sample your merchandise?" I growled.

"Only on special occasions," he answered in the same tone as before.

"These men deserve far worse," I said darkly. "If they suffered every day for the rest of their lives, it still wouldn't be enough. I will make each one of these men wish they had never been born."

I could see tears welling in Bree's eyes as she stared angrily at the men she'd just protected. I decided to let her anger simmer by not bringing her comfort. There was a lesson to be learned here. These men were the vilest, most repulsive creatures ever born form human beings, but that didn't mean they couldn't be useful. I would practice my Genjutsu on them. I would use it to rewrite their minds so thoroughly that they could no longer remember anything about themselves. Then I would decide what to do with them.

With a mental command, one of the still mounted men jumped down and then back up onto a horse with one of the others. The man on the ground then did the same, leaving two horses unburdened. I carefully made eye contact with each of the horses as well, adding them to my Genjutsu and allowing me to command them more effectively.

"Excellent work Takachi," Shikamari praised as she mounted one of the two horses. "Let's get going."

I took a small jump and landed on the second horse. I held out a hand to Bree who took it and clambered onto the horse behind me.

"I think you're right," she whispered. "But I'm scared of what torturing them might do to you."

"Don't worry about me," I said soothingly. "I know how to keep myself sane."

At my urging, the horses all started down the road in our previous direction of travel. We all stayed quiet for the next hour. We would occasionally see a traveler, but there were no more incidents. The Genjutsu I placed the men and horses under did not require a constant flow of Chakra as it was more similar to brainwashing. Instead of keeping them under the illusion, I created thoughts and memories for them. It wasn't so thorough that they wouldn't eventually break free, and it certainly never would have worked on Shinobi, but it would keep them under my control for a few more hours at least.

"We're almost there," Shikamari told us. "Only another kilometer or so."

"That's a relief," Bree said, adjusting uncomfortably in the saddle. "I don't care for horse riding."

I laughed softly but said nothing. We'd covered the remaining three hours of the journey in only one thanks to the horses. After a moment more on the road, Shikamari stopped us and veered off into the tree line. The horses followed without question thanks to my conditioning. A little more than half a kilometer into the forest, we found a small concrete building with a metal door. It was old, easily over 30 years. Shikamari stopped and dismounted her horse, then instructed Bree and I to do the same.

"This was one of Orochimaru's old hideouts," she explained. "We have since removed its contents and converted it into a safe house for the ANBU. Only the three of us, Director Sai, and the current Hokage know of its exact location. We will be safe here."

"I hope it's less dreary than when it still belonged to Orochimaru," I muttered.

"Lights have been added and the rooms have been reasonably furnished," she answered plainly. "I think you'll find this to be a livable space. Now, I think it's time to deal with our uninvited guests."

"Perhaps," I said. "This did used to essentially be a prison though. I'm sure we could find a place to keep them."

"Do you intend to use them to better yourself?" she asked.

"I do," came my reply.

"Very well," she said. "Bring them inside. Release the horses, but ensure that they never go back to where they came from."

It struck me as odd that she wanted me to release them instead of killing them, but I then noticed that she said that while looking at Bree. It was for Bree's benefit, not the horses. As requested I made a small adjustment to the horses mental conditioning that allowed them to leave, but never return where they came from. I slightly coveted their newfound freedom, but at the same time I reveled in the power that I had to grant it. At the conclusion of the Jutsu, I gasped as a stabbing pain shot through my abdomen. My Sharingan flickered out of existence and my vision darkened around the edges. Just when I thought I would pass out like before, the pain subsided and my vision returned to me. Bree had come to me as soon as I gasped and tried to speak to me. It came out garbled to me however, my hearing sounding like my ears were filled with mud.

"Are you okay?" she asked, me being able to properly hear it for the first time.

"Better now," I grunted as I returned to a standing position. "Too many Genjutsu."

"You should be more careful," she scolded.

"I'm okay now," I said. "Let's go in."

The six men had already dismounted and were awaiting my instruction as their horses walked off into the forest. Bree and I walked through the door after Shikamari. The six prisoners followed me in, unable to resist their brainwashing. As promised, the hallways were well lit and revealed a multitude of doors along each corridor.

"Where can we find a prison cell of some kind?" I asked.

"That's where we're going," Shikamari answered.

We followed for a few minutes before reaching a large chamber that was more dimly lit than the others. Inside were dozens of cells all under the control of a panel at the top where we were. My sensei flipped six switches and six of the cells opened with a buzz. I directed the six men to climb down the ladder into the pit and enter their respective cells.

"Well," I said. "That's done."

"Indeed," Shikamari said. "I can give you more lessons in a few days. In the meantime, the two of you should get some rest."

"How long will the provisions last?" I asked

"This safe house was designed to house up to three-hundred ANBU for up to five years," she explained. "The provisions will likely outlast us."

"Why so much?" Bree asked in amazement.

"The ANBU created this place twenty-five years ago to serve as a top secret forward base in case of subsequent invasion," Shikamari explained. "The fear was that due to the war, other countries might decide that we would be weakened enough to overwhelm. The chance of this happening with the Kage Alliance was miniscule, but nevertheless present. But as predicted, no attack ever came. And the base was never used."

"That makes sense I guess," Bree replied.

"Turned out to be useful after all," I added.

Shikamari nodded and led us out of the prison area. Several corridors later, we reached a massive chamber. This room was some kind of training area. On the far side of the room were three open doors. Climbing down the stairs to the training floor revealed just how huge it really was. The ceiling was twenty-five meters over our heads, and the floor was over one-hundred meters on each side.

"Your rooms are through those doors at the end," Shikamari said. "You guys are free to explore, but don't get lost. No printed maps were ever made so if you wander off, it would be wise to make a mental note of your path."

"Can we make our own map?" I asked.

"You may," she answered. "But don't let it leave the compound."

I nodded and started towards the rooms at the other side of the training field. The ceiling was completely unsupported, making me question what techniques were used to strengthen the materials. It took almost two minutes at my leisurely pace to reach the doors. I only gave my choice in room a passing thought before entering the door on the left. The inside of the room was just as exaggeratedly large as the indoor training field. It would have actually been easier to compare it to a moderate house. Even though Shikamari had referred to it as a room, it actually contained several rooms as well as a central living area. The furnishings were modest but comfortable.

"If I'd known we'd have this much space," I heard Bree's voice in the doorway. "I'd have been less frugal with my packing."

"I think I might have too," I agreed. "But I'm exhausted. I don't know about you, but I'm going to sleep."

"Can I sleep in here?" she asked timidly.

"Sure," I yawned. "It's not as though we're short on space."

"Thanks."

I sauntered into the room with the large empty bed in it, removed my armor, and collapsed. Rolling over onto my back. I stared at the ceiling. The bed bounced next to me as Bree did the same.

"Good night," I slurred as my vision darkened.

"Good night," Bree answered as the last vestiges of my hearing vanished.

Unlike the last time I woke up, I got all my senses back at once. I found myself instantly alert. The sound of savage shrieking sounded next to me on the bed. I dove off the bed and activated my Sharingan. Bree had halfway transformed into her monstrous form. I couldn't see the natural energy plaguing her body, but I could see her Chakra darken and surge with power. Without hesitation, I leapt on an arching trajectory and landed over top my friend. Getting onto my knees and gripping what was left of her collar with both hands, I pulled her face in range of mine and blasted her with the strongest Genjutsu I could muster. Instantly, her convulsions ceased and her body began to transform back into itself.

"Do you have this?" I heard the voice of my Sensei in the door.

"Yes," I said, panting. "Thank you for not interfering."

Shikamari said nothing else as she walked out of my area. A moment later, Bree was completely back to normal.

"Did I…?" she asked, unable to finish her question.

"Yeah," I said rolling off her and onto the bed. "But it's fine."

She sat up and I noticed just how damaged her shirt was. The tattered remnants left the bare skin of her back exposed. I averted my enhanced vision.

"You might want to grab a new shirt," I said. "I think I'm gonna sleep some more. That was abrupt."

"It's fine," she answered. "I can get one later. I'm tired too."

I felt her pull a blanket from the foot of the bed over herself.

"Besides," she added. "It doesn't really matter. We're a team. If we never saw each other naked, I'd be surprised."

I looked over at her, searching for signs of jest. I found none. It also occurred to me that yet another near death experience just happened, and yet we just lay back down like nothing happened. Despite my desire for sleep however, my suddenly wide awake body solidly prevented that from happening. My eyes opened again, followed by my Sharingan activating.

"I can't sleep," I said as I turned to look at Bree.

Her eyes were still wide open.

"Me either," she agreed. "Train?"

"Sure," I said. "How long did we sleep?"

"It feels like a long time," she said. "I don't really know though."

We both sat up and stretched. I tried my best to avoid looking in her direction as her shredded shirt really left nothing to the imagination. I stood and walked over to the dresser in the corner of the room. Inside I found a variety of clothing, including some of the sleeveless ANBU shirts. I tossed one to Bree. She caught it and replaced her damaged one with it.

I checked my Chakra levels to try and get an indication of how long we'd slept. As far as I could tell, I was completely back at full strength, so it had to have been at least eight hours. I decided to leave my armor off as I was planning on practicing my new elemental release. With Bree more modestly dressed, we walked out into the massive chamber that was our training field. Each of us found some space and began working on personal projects. Bree was working on her earth release, while I started on my own nature ability.

Again, I started by creating the little green ball. Then I changed its shape. First I made a needle. Then I tried to make it into a flat square. I then made it into a shuriken. Controlling the shape was incredibly taxing, both Chakra wise and focus wise. While I still had plenty of Chakra, if I had to learn this in increments of forty minutes a day, it would take decades. I had to find a way to make this take less Chakra, or get more Chakra for myself. I decided to think on the issue while I worked on my Lightning Release.

My lightning Release was a far more rewarding focus. While my Chakra levels were mediocre at best, my Chakra control allowed me to perform Lightning Jutsu without too much issue. I still had yet to start learning the Chidori, but I could feel that I was almost ready to try it. Bree became momentarily distracted from her Earth Release when I summoned a lightning bolt that shot up into the ceiling, leaving a charred hole in the chiseled rock.

"I thought you were working on your new element," she called as she approached.

"I was," came my response. "I've hit a snag."

"Which is?" she inquired.

"It still takes too much Chakra to maintain the shapes," I explained. "I just tried to do the same thing as before, and it sucked down a tenth of my Chakra in two minutes. I could never maintain that."

"So what are you going to do?" she pressed her questioning.

"I'm going to think," I said with a shrug. "Until I come up with a solution, this ability is more likely to exhaust or kill me, rather than provide me an asset."

"What part takes too much Chakra?" she asked, suddenly more excited.

I opened my mouth to answer her but then closed it again. It took me a moment to figure out where the drain came from.

"The creation of a construct does take a lot," I started. "But that is only needed one time. Keeping the construct from fizzling out of existence is a different matter. It drains my Chakra at rates you would only expect from Jonin level abilities."

"So how can you make it not need Chakra to maintain?" she asked.

"I'm not sure," came my answer. "But that narrows my focus a bit. Thanks."

We stayed out for another hour, Bree practicing her earth, while I eventually changed over to work on my fire. When we saw Shikamari exit her room on the far right, we both stopped and started to head in her direction.

"Your pets need some attention," she told me as I walked up. "You should probably feed them or they'll die."

Bree grimaced at the use of the word, "pets," but otherwise said nothing.

"I'll bring some rations to them in a moment," I said. "What did you need?"

"Just came to check on you guys," she answered. "I didn't expect you guys to be back at it this soon."

"We're fine," I said "I just ran into a problem with my new nature."

"What kind of problem?" our sensei asked. "Maybe I can help."

I focused my Chakra and caused the little green ball to appear.

"It's no wonder you had Chakra deprivation," Shikamari said, a shocked expression on her face. "How long can you maintain that?"

"Not long," I answered as I let the ball disappear again. "Speaking of which, I thought I was supposed to get stimulants to help treat my condition."

"You are," she confirmed as she tossed me a small plastic bottle. "You haven't needed them yet because the doctors at the village gave you a huge slow release dose already. That's why you've been so energized."

"I see," same my frowning reply. "But what are your thoughts on my nature?"

"Well," she said with a thoughtful expression. "The Chakra you're using has an inherent stability for sure. Otherwise it wouldn't maintain a solid form. It would seem that it only needs the tiniest push and it would hold its shape on its own. Can you change its shape at all?"

"Almost infinitely," I answered. "But it doesn't help me if I can't keep it active."

"Actually," she started. "I think your ability to change its shape is the key. That's the only thing that lacks complete stability. If you find a way to remove the constructs ability to change shape, you'll remove its last instability. Sounds like you need to invent a whole new technique. I'll get you a book."

"Thank you Sensei," I said. "I should go take care of our guests."

She nodded and walked away as usual, leaving me with only Bree and my thoughts.

"Was that helpful?" my friend asked. "Her advice?"

"Immensely," I answered. "I just have to figure out how."

With a shrug, she went back over to where she had been working on making what looked like a small house using only her Jutsu. Had I not been so preoccupied with my thoughts, I would have taken a moment to be impressed. As it was, I walked out of the massive underground chamber and retraced my steps back to the prison where the six men were. Before I was even close to the other large room, I could hear them screaming through the bars of their cells. Arriving in the room, I leapt down to the floor of the pit, ignoring the ladder. Their screams ended immediately.

"You didn't think I forgot about you," I said menacingly with my Sharingan flaring. "On the contrary, you are all very important to me."

"What the hell is this you little brat?" one of them shouted.

"Let us out and we'll let you die quickly," another added.

I raised my hands and they again became silent.

"You all have two choices," I said. "You can sit in those cells and starve. After which I'll leave your corpses to rot. Or, you can agree to submit yourselves to full mental reconditioning, and become my servants. I'll be back in one hour with food. If you refuse my generous offer of servitude, I will leave it here where I stand and you'll never see me again. If you accept, you will be fed, and tomorrow your conditioning begins. Your choice gentlemen."

Without another word, or even acknowledging their resumed cries of panic or their threats, I leapt back up to the level above and left the prison.

"Why ask them to submit?" came the voice of Shikamari out of the shadows. "Genjutsu does not require a voluntary victim."

"I don't intend to control them with Genjutsu," I explained. "My intention is to rewrite their minds with Genjutsu over several days. Their minds will be forever lost in a sea of memories and ideas placed there by me."

"I see," came her only reply.

I half expected her to object to my dark intentions, but she actually seemed impressed. As we walked, my sensei presented me with an old leather bound book entitled, "Secrets of the Hands."

"What's this?" I asked, accepting the book and inspecting its cover.

"That is a book on hand seals and Chakra control," she answered. "It will give you all the information you need to create a Jutsu. Though it may take you several years to successfully master its secrets."

"Thank you sensei," I said appreciatively.

She made an acknowledging sound but said nothing. Flipping the book open, I skimmed through the first few pages with my Sharingan. While I could perceive the writing itself faster than with my normal eyes, my mind could only ingest so much information at once. I found my sensei's words about the process potentially taking years to be fairly close to accurate. A few more moments of skimming later, I noticed that my sensei had led me to an unfamiliar hallway. At the end of the long corridor, was another large room, though it lacked the high ceilings of the prison or the training field. The room's purpose became obvious to me when I saw the many columns and aisles of shelves running up and down the room. At least two-hundred scrolls sat upon each of them.

"Wow," I breathed, wide eyed and otherwise speechless.

"Yeah," Shikamari said. "I discovered that five year thing might have been a slight downplay. Then I remembered that the team set to work on this project was given five years to prepare it, and a budget of three billion yen. I'm pretty sure that they ran out of things to do after the first year. The rest of the funds had to have gone into this insanity."

"I can see that," came my reply, still shocked.

"The rations section is over there," she added, pointing to a line of shelves along the left hand wall. "If you can call them rations."

"What do you mean by that?" I asked looking up at her.

"Just grab a scroll and you'll see," she said, shaking her head disapprovingly.

I curiously approached the line of shelves and retrieved one of hundreds of scrolls. Placing it on the floor and unrolling it, I found that the seals were more similar to Survival Scrolls. I didn't feel the need to unravel it all the way to see how many slots it had, but I could tell that it was likely comparable, to my own scroll. Placing my hand on one of the seals, I allowed a tiny amount of Chakra to pour into the cloth. With a pop and a puff of smoke, a bowl of gourmet ramen appeared. From the steam rising from it, I could tell that not only was it still hot, it was freshly made. I looked over at my sensei with a confused expression, and she shrugged her shoulders. Turning back to the food, I retrieved the chopsticks next to the bowl and took a curious bite. It was just as good as it looked.

"All these scrolls cannot possibly contain gourmet food," I said through a mouthful of noodles, suddenly realizing how hungry I was.

"I checked six before I gave up thinking that," Shikamari answered with a laugh.

I was in disbelief. Finally finishing the bowl, it took every ounce of willpower not to pop open another seal. I rolled the scroll back up and tucked it under my arm with the book my sensei had given me. I decided I would bring Bree breakfast.

"I'm going to go feed Bree," I said. "Then I'm going to go taunt my pets with food."

Shikamari nodded. We exited the storeroom together and headed back down the hallway. Shikamari turned off into one of the passages to the left while I continued on towards the training field. Upon arriving I was greeted by a huge tremor and an impressive site. Bree had completely recreated the exterior of the Hokage mansion out of stone, serving to accentuate just how large the underground chamber really was.

"This is the second time I've been surprised today," I said as I approached, trying, and failing, to tear my eyes away from the stone masterpiece. "I got you breakfast."

I held a hand out to present the food scroll to my friend as I continued to study the detailed construction.

"Thanks I'm starving," she answered, snatching the scroll away. "What's in this?"

I finally managed to look away long enough to see Bree studying the various sealing slots on the scroll.

"Just open one and find out," I encouraged.

With a shrug, she placed the scroll on the ground, as I had done only a few minutes before, and placed a hand over top of it. With a familiar flash of my friend's Chakra, a puff of smoke, and a small pop, a bowl of something that looked like eggs rice and meat appeared. From the look on Bree's face, it wasn't hard for me to figure out she'd been expecting rations.

"What the…" she said, her voice trailing off.

I smirked at her as she looked up at me.

"Are you gonna eat that or not?" I asked. "Cause I'm still a bit hungry."

My jab snapped her out of her stupor, and she began eating excitedly.

"Is all the food like this?" she asked through a mouthful of food.

"As far as we found," I answered with a nod.

Without speaking the rest of the time, she finished the bowl and leaned back on her arms.

"That was good," she said. "Why is there hot food inside scrolls?"

"We don't know either," I answered. "But the storeroom has hundreds, if not thousands of scrolls just like this one."

Bree shook her head in disbelief.

"Does this have an interior?" I asked, gesturing at the massive stone building.

"Not yet," she admitted. "I've only seen the outside."

"Well don't let me stop you," I said, taking a step back. "This is only going to improve your skill."

Bree nodded appreciatively and went back to her work of tweaking and sculpting. I watched her Chakra flow carefully to see how her control was doing, but stopped after I noticed that she was almost perfectly efficient. I resigned to watching her work until I remembered the book under my arm. Placing it in front of me and opening it, I started to read the book that would unlock the secrets of my new element. It started out with some basic charts and explanations of how Chakra flows, and how it can be influenced. Next came the hand seals. An introductory explanation of the general effect that hand seals had on Chakra flow revealed nothing new to me. I'd seen most of these effects by watching other people use Jutsu with my Sharingan active. But the ability to use the same hand seal for different purposes confused me, so I kept reading. Almost a half hour later, I'd finished the first section of the first chapter. I had acquired more knowledge than I'd been expecting and decided to take a break.

"I'm going to bring food to those men," I called to Bree.

She didn't respond but I knew she'd heard me by the motion she made with her hand. I got up and trotted back towards the prison. I arrived almost perfectly at the hour mark.

"I hope you've all come to a decision," I said as I leapt to the floor. "What'll it be gentlemen?"

"We accept," all but one said.

"What about you," I asked, approaching the man's cage.

"Screw you," he said.

"Suit yourself," I said. "You can't change your mind later."

I placed the food scroll on the floor and retrieved five bowls of assorted foods that I cared too little about to inspect. The men appeared grateful though I knew they would definitely bite the hand feeding them if given the opportunity.

"Wise decision for you five," I said. "Your friend will not be so fortunate. After he dies from starvation or dehydration, I'll come move the body so you don't have to suffer from his misfortune. Oh, and if anyone feeds him, I'll make sure that person dies in more pain than any of you have ever felt in your lives."

I didn't wait to hear their replies. Leaping out of the pit and walking out of the room, I made my way back to the storeroom to see what other resources I could find. Entering the massive shelved area, I began to walk up and down the aisles, scanning each scroll. I stopped when I found shelves that seemed to have weapons in their scrolls. I found scrolls filled with kunai, shuriken, senbon, and a few other less common throwing weapons. I grabbed a scroll that said kunai and opened it. I placed it on the floor, and activated one of its seals. A stack of about fifty kunai appeared with the standard pop and smoke. I reactivated the seal and allowed the weapons to re-enter the scroll. After rolling it back up, I tucked it under my arm and kept looking. I stopped briefly at a scroll containing explosive tags, but dismissed them due to the lack of stealthy options for them. Finding nothing else of immediate interest, I headed back to the training field. Bree was sitting on top of her monstrous construction, panting, as I entered.

"Hey!" she called excitedly. "I did an interior. I don't know how accurate it is since I've never seen it."

"Let's take a look," I called back. "I have some books I want to read. Maybe it'll be a nice change of scenery."

"You're always reading," she pouted, leaping down from the structure.

"I have to invent a Jutsu," I justified. "Come read with me."

She didn't answer but continued hopping down and then fell into step beside me as I headed for my room.

"What book?" she asked.

"The one my mother gave to me about Owls," I said.

"What about owls?" she asked, reminding me that I hadn't told her about them.

"I've been searching for a summoning contract," I started. "Owls apparently have the ability to teach a version of Sage Mode, and I plan to find where they've been hiding. My mother searched through the restricted section of the library for me."

"I see," she answered. "But why someone so elusive? Don't the toads and snakes also teach it?"

"They do," I admitted. "But the toads would never teach an Uchiha. And I don't trust the snakes. I'm sure I could look else ware, but this seemed like a worthwhile challenge."

She laughed when I said, "challenge."

"Okay," she agreed. "I'll read with you. Maybe they'll teach me too."

We headed into the house Bree constructed, found a place to get to work, and started studying.


End file.
